Be Very Afraid
by CrypticGirl
Summary: When Moses and Jay are filled with fear, the only thing that can comfort them is each other. MosesxJay Concluded 02.02.07.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: ToL is owned by Namco. If it was me, ToL wouldn't be so cool...  


Chapter 1

"I'd like you all to listen up," Will said sternly.

The group was gathered at Will's house, giving their undivided attention. Their eyes widened upon hearing the statement.

"What is it, Will?" Senel asked. "You sound serious."

Will smiled. "Tomorrow marks Madame Musette's birthday. Every year, we gather at the fountain plaza to celebrate with a performance from the Bantam Bouncers and a display of fireworks."

"Yippee!" Harriet yelled. "I love fireworks!"

"Me too!" Norma said.

"They sure make a big deal out of it, don't they?" Senel asked.

"Given Musette's station, it's hardly surprising," Chloe told him.

"We should be there in case something happens," Will said. "These are dangerous times, and you never know when Vaclav may choose to rear his ugly face."

"Yeah, we ain't about to let Vaclav ruin all the fun!" Moses growled.

Just then, one of the Oresoren entered the house and whispered something into Jay's ear. Accordingly, Jay stood up.

"My apologies, but I must leave for a while," he said.

"What is it?" Will asked.

"It's nothing. Just a small matter that I need to take care of."

Jay turned and left the house. Everyone paused for a moment.

"Somehow I think it's more than just a 'small matter,'" Senel said.

"As do I," Will agreed.

Moses jumped to his feet. "Want me to go after him?"

"Yes, please," Will said. "We all know what happened the last time he went off on his own."

"All right!" Moses dashed out of the house and caught up with Jay as he was leaving town. "Jay!"

Jay stopped. "What is it?"

"I'm comin' with ya!"

Jay looked annoyed. "I don't need help, especially not from you."

"Oh yeah? Remember what happened last time?"

Jay gasped; he did remember. "That...that won't happen again, I swear it."

Moses stomped his foot. "Quit arguin' with me! I'm comin' with ya, and that's final!"

Jay sighed. "Fine. The longer I argue with you, the longer it'll take to settle this matter."

"All right! Whoo! Let's go! Wait...where're we goin'?"

"There's some suspicious activity near the Waterways. I'm going to look into it."

Jay and Moses left the town and took the duct to the Waterways. The path outside the ruin looked empty...at first. When they reached the entrance, they found two ninjas standing guard.

"Ah...I thought as much," Jay said, tapping his foot in his fighting stance.

Moses raised his spear. "All right! Time to get your butts kicked!"

The ninjas prepared to fight as well. "Master, they're here!"

"Excellent..." a voice called as Solon emerged from the ruin. "Hmm...I was expecting all eight of you to show up, but no matter. You two will make fine guinea pigs."

Jay raised an eye. "Guinea pigs for what?"

"Bah! I ain't no guinea pig!" Moses spat.

Solon tossed a smoke bomb at them. It hit the ground in front of them and exploded, engulfing the duo in a cloud of smoke. Suddenly, they felt the irritation in their lungs, and they began to cough violently. Solon watched them carefully, grinning evilly. The smoke eventually cleared, and Solon waited to see what would happen next.

Moses grabbed his head with both hands. "I ain't feelin' so good..."

Jay was about to comment on how pathetic Moses was when he realized that he felt incredibly drowsy with a monstrous headache. Jay grabbed his head as well. "Me neither..."

Solon continued to grin. "Oh, you poor children. You should go home and get some sleep. I shall return tomorrow and inquire as to how you are feeling."

He and the ninjas vanished in a puff of smoke. Jay and Moses continued to stand hunched over.

"What's up with him, bein' all nice all of a sudden?" Moses asked.

"He's up to something..." Jay said. "I don't think he said it to be nice."

"What do we do?"

"I hate to say it, but I'll have to take Solon's advice, go home, and go to sleep..."

"Yeah...me too..."

The pair walked back to the duct by the Waterways. Moses stepped inside first and took the duct to Werites Beacon. Jay waited for the duct to open up again, before he stepped inside as well, programming it to transport him to the Oresoren village.

------------

When Moses went into town again, he went straight to his bandits' camp right in front of the lighthouse. Senel managed to meet him halfway and followed him there.

"Moses, what's going on?" he asked.

Moses stopped in the grass. "It really was just a small matter..."

"Where's Jay?"

"He went to the Oresoren village, I reckon..."

"Moses!" Grune called sweetly.

She stepped into the camp and hugged Moses. "Welcome home, Moses."

"Yeehaw!" Moses yelled.

"Oh brother..." Senel mumbled.

However, instead of taking off as expected, Moses collapsed to the ground face-first. Senel bent over him.

"Moses?"

Grune put her finger to her lips. "Shh. Let's not wake him."

Senel shrugged. "Well, all right..."

-------------

Upon his return to the Oresoren village, Jay went straight to Quppo's house.

"Welcome home, Jay!" Quppo said cheerfully.

Jay didn't respond as he went upstairs to his bedroom. Quppo followed him. Jay fell forward onto his bed, only to roll off to the floor.

"Jay?" Quppo went to check on him. "You don't look so good. You're all hot and clammy. Ors!"

Pippo and Poppo came in. "Ors, ors!"

"What's wrong, Quppo?" Pippo asked.

"Jay is very sick!" Quppo cried. "We've got to help him! Ors!"

"Ors, ors!" The Scallop Brothers pulled the blanket from the bed and laid it out over Jay's unconscious body...


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Moses looked around. He recognized this place as the Forest of No Return, but somehow it seemed unfamiliar to him. It was as if he was in a whole new dimension.

A grand galf stepped out into the open. Moses raised his spear.

"All right, it's huntin' time!" he yelled.

The galf lowered its stance, growling. Then a whole pack of grand galves emerged from the bushes, surrounding the bandit.

"Uh...this ain't lookin' so good."

Moses slowly turned in circles, bracing himself for any one of the galves to attack. However, one galf attacked from behind, tackling Moses to the ground. The other galves pounced as well, all mauling him. Moses could do nothing but scream...

"Moses! Moses, wake up!"

"Ahh, quit eatin' me! Ahh!"

"Moses!"

"Ahh!" Moses woke up, scrambling to his hands and knees. "Oh, Csaba, it's you."

"You're fine now, Moses," Csaba said. "You were just having a bad dream."

"Oh...it was a dream..." Moses grinned with a nervous sweat. "I knew that..."

Giet stepped out of one of the tents. Moses quickly jumped to his feet.

"Ahh! It's a galf!"

"Yeah...that's Giet," Csaba said. "Your best friend...no, _our _best friend."

Giet whimpered as he moved closer.

Moses staggered away. "Ahh! Keep that beast away from me!"

Csaba raised an eye. "Are you sure you're all right, Moses?"

Giet walked over to Moses, sniffing his feet.

"Ahh!" Moses turned and ran from the camp. "WAAAAHHH!!"

Csaba stood, thoroughly confused. "He must have had a really bad nightmare to be shaken up this much, Giet."

Giet only whimpered in response.

-------------------

Jay walked through the empty Oresoren village. For some reason, he could not find his way around...as if the entire village had been warped.

"Ors?"

Jay spun around to see an Oresoren standing behind him with a plate of scallops.

"Here, Jay, have some scallops. Ors!"

Many more Oresoren emerged from their hiding places, moving in front of Jay.

"Ors! Have some scallops, Jay!"

"You will eat these scallops if we have to force them down your throat! Ors!"

Jay took a few steps backwards. Accordingly, the Oresoren moved forward.

"Ors!!" The Oresoren now charged at Jay.

"Ahh!" Jay staggered backwards until he hit the wall and collapsed to the floor. "Ahh!"

"Ors, ors, ors!" The Oresoren descended on the boy, bouncing all over him while forcing scallops into his mouth. "Ors, ors, ors!"

"Ahh! No! Stop! I don't want...! Help!"

Jay sat up, opening his eyes. He was now in his bedroom alone. He covered his face with his blanket as he gathered his thoughts. _What just happened?_

Quppo came into the room with a plate of scallops. "Jay! Are you all right? We heard you scream. Ors!"

Jay stood up, blinking hard. _Ors?_

"You're looking much better this morning, Jay," Quppo said. "We were so worried when you collapsed yesterday."

Jay paused. _Yesterday...that thing with Solon...that must be what happened._

Quppo stepped forward with a plate of scallops. "Are you hungry, Jay? I brought you some fresh scallops. Ors!"

Jay staggered backwards. "St...stay back!"

"You'll feel better after you eat, Jay."

"Don't...don't come near me with that!"

"Ors, ors!" Quppo took yet another step closer.

Jay grabbed his head. "Ugh...argh!" He ran past Quppo and dashed out of the room.

Quppo looked very confused. "Was it something I said? Ors?"

Jay stopped at the base of the stairs and sighed.

"Oh, Jay, you're awake," Poppo said. "Ors, ors!"

Jay gasped again. "Ahh!" He dashed out of the house.

Poppo and Pippo glanced at each other. "Ors?"

Jay ran down the road of the village, then stopped in the center. Now he could see the Oresoren all around him, living their everyday lives. They began calling out to Jay.

"Hello, Jay! Ors, ors!"

"Are you feeling better, Jay? Ors?"

"What's the matter, Jay?"

"Ors, ors, ors!"

_They're...everywhere!_ Jay thought. _I can't stand it!_

"Ahh!" Jay screamed one more time as he fled the village.

-------------------

Today was officially Madame Musette's birthday. Will went to her house with Senel, Shirley, Chloe, Norma, and Grune. They waited patiently in the living room until Musette came downstairs, then they all placed their left fists on their right shoulders.

"Happy Birthday, Madame Musette!" they called in unison.

"Oh, thank you very much!" Musette replied. "It's good to see all of you. You are coming to the celebration tonight, are you not?"

"Of course," Will said.

"We'll all be there to keep things in line," Chloe added.

Musette shook her head. "Oh, you needn't worry about that. You should relax and have a good time, Chloe."

"But I'm a knight. It's my duty to..."

"I know you're a knight. But that doesn't mean that you can't enjoy yourself every now and then."

"Well, that's true..."

"Well then, is anything happening with you all?" Musette asked. "I see that Moses and Jay aren't with you."

"Actually, there is something on my mind," Senel told her. "Yesterday, Jay and Moses left to take care of a 'small matter.' They never did tell us what that 'small matter' was."

"Have you found out anything, Senel?" Will asked.

"Not really...but when Moses got back, he looked incredibly pale, and he just collapsed."

"And Jay?"

"I still haven't seen Jay since he left yesterday."

"I see. Let's go check on Moses. Perhaps now he'll tell us what happened."

The group nodded in agreement, but before they could leave, Moses came into the house, breathing heavily.

"Haa...haa...haa...woo-hoo!!"

"Oh, Moses, good timing," Senel said. "We were just about to check on you."

Moses straightened himself. "Is that right?"

"Coolidge told us that you just collapsed yesterday," Chloe said. "What happened?"

"Oh, it's nothin'. I was just tired after walkin' with Jay."

"Are you sure?" Senel asked. "I've seen you look tired before, but it was nothing compared to what you looked like yesterday."

"Well, I was really, really tired," Moses insisted.

"Hmm, you do look fine now," Will admitted.

"Right! So...now what?"

"Well...today is Madame Musette's birthday..." Shirley reminded him.

"Oh yeah!" Moses put his left fist to his right shoulder. "Happy Birthday, Madame!"

"Thank you, Moses," Musette replied.

Suddenly, they heard a low dong sound, and Moses jumped with a start.

"Whoa! What was that!?"

"That's the grandfather clock," Will told him.

"Oh..." Moses took a deep breath. "O-okay..."

Just then, the cuckoo clock began cooing the top of the hour loudly.

"AHH! What was that!?" Moses screamed.

"That's the cuckoo clock," Chloe said.

"Oh..."

"Red, are you feeling okay?" Norma asked, containing a laugh.

"Uh...yeah!" Moses stammered. "I...just don't like loud noises, remember?"

"But the grandfather clock wasn't loud at all," Shirley said.

"Well...it still startled me."

Norma carefully snuck around behind Moses. "Ooga-booga!!"

Moses spun around with another start. "Ahh! AAAAAAAHHHHH!!!!"

The bandit dashed out of the house, leaving everyone confused.

"I'm just kidding! Sheesh!" Norma exclaimed.

Senel scratched his head. "Okay...that was strange, even for Moses."

"I agree," Will said. "I wonder if that has to do with the 'small matter' they were taking care of yesterday."

"The only way to find out is to go see Jay," Chloe said.

"When Moses came back, he said that Jay went back to the Oresoren village," Senel said.

Before they could decide on their next course of action, Csaba entered the house with Giet.

"Oh, Csaba, you're taking care of Giet today?" Senel asked.

Csaba scratched his head. "Well...I guess you could say that."

"Csaba, have you noticed anything...strange...about Moses lately?" Will asked. "Did he tell you anything about what happened yesterday?"

"He hasn't told me anything, but he's definitely acting strange," Csaba told him. "It started this morning, when he had a nightmare. I don't know what it was about, but it really shook him up. When he woke up, he was afraid of Giet."

Senel's eyes widened. "Moses was afraid of Giet??"

Csaba nodded. "That's right. After he fled from the camp, he ran three laps around the city before coming here."

Norma scoffed. "Typical Red..."

"Moses being afraid of Giet is _not _typical," Will corrected her.

"We have to go see Jay," Senel said. "I have a feeling that the same thing may have happened to him...whatever it was."

The group nodded. "Right."

They stepped outside to see Moses running down the road towards them.

"Is Red running even more laps around the city?" Norma asked.

Giet ran out into the road, and Moses came to a screeching halt.

"Ack!" Moses turned around and began running in the other direction. "WAAAAAAHHHH!!!"

Senel, Will, Shirley, Norma, and Chloe shrugged and let out a simultaneous sigh...


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

The party headed for the entrance of the city, en route to the Oresoren village to see Jay. However, they found that there was no need to visit the village, as they found Jay entering Werites Beacon as they reached the entrance.

"Oh, Jay, good timing," Senel said. "We wanted to talk to you."

"What is it?" Jay asked.

"We wanted to ask you about the 'small matter' that you attended to yesterday," Will said.

Jay put his hands behind his back and his right heel forward. "It's all right. The small matter has been taken care of. There's no need to worry."

"Well, we wouldn't worry if Moses wasn't acting strange," Senel said.

"Hey JJ, have you seen Red?" Norma asked. "He's, like, totally afraid of Spot now."

Jay's eyes widened. "Really?"

"Csaba said it was because Sandor had a nightmare last night," Chloe added. "Did you have any nightmares, Jay?"

"Uh...n-no! I never remember my dreams."

Will stroked his chin. "I see..."

"Is that all you needed?" Jay asked. "I'm getting tired of you ganging up on me about the small matter. As I said, it's just a small matter."

Norma decided to try a little experiment, and slowly snuck around behind Jay.

"Norma..." Will said sternly, shaking his head.

"Aww..." Norma dropped her head.

Jay turned around and staggered back upon seeing Norma. "Wh...what are you doing!?"

"Uh...nothing."

"Don't scare me like that!" Jay ran past the group and down the road.

Norma scratched her head. "Okay...JJ's acting kind of weird, too."

Senel shrugged. "How do we convince them to tell us what happened?"

"We can't force them to tell us," Will said. "But I'm sure we'll find out soon enough."

-------------

Jay explored the town, using his enhanced senses to search for Moses. He eventually walked past the bandits' camp, where he spotted Giet in front of the water mill.

"Giet?" Jay approached the galf at the base of the wooden stairs. "Is Moses in there?"

"Woof!" Giet barked in the affirmative.

As Jay walked up the stairs to the door, Giet and ran towards the camp. Jay didn't seem to notice as he gently knocked on the door. A moment of silence passed until Moses finally opened the door. There was another paused as the small information dealer and the red-haired bandit stared at each other, no particular emotions crossing their faces. Then, without warning, Moses seemed to fall forward, grabbing onto Jay with a full embrace.

"Jay...somethin' awful happened to me!" he cried. "I had this dream last night, and now I'm scared as all get-out!"

Jay's eyes widened. "You, too?"

Moses straightened himself. "What do you mean?"

"The same thing happened to me. I too had a nightmare, and since then, I haven't been able to face the Oresoren. I still love them like my family, and yet I...I..."

"Yeah...Giet scares me like nothin' else now."

"Moses...what was your dream about?"

"I dreamed that a whole bunch of galves were attackin' me..." Moses broke out in tears as he embraced Jay again. "They were rippin' me to pieces!"

"My dream was about the Oresoren," Jay said shakily. "They were bouncing all over me and feeding me scallops...they were force feeding me."

"Why did this happen to us?"

"I'm not certain, but I believe it may have to do with that gas that Solon gave us yesterday."

"Damn it...what are we gonna do when we're all scared?"

Before they could come up with an answer, Norma called out to them.

"Ah ha, we found you!"

"Ack!" Moses fled back into the water mill, yanking Jay inside, and slammed the door.

"Hey, that's not very nice!" Norma yelled as the rest of the party gathered behind her.

"Norma, that's enough," Will said.

"I'm really curious to know what's up with those two," Senel said.

"Well, duh!" Norma replied. "They're getting hot and horny."

"Hot and horny?" It took Senel a moment to realize what that meant. He then shook it off quickly. "No, I'm not talking about that! I'm talking about them being afraid of everything!"

"Let's see if we can talk to them and find out what's going on. Will walked up to the door and knocked gently. "Are you two all right in there?"

"Yeah, we're fine!" Moses called from within.

"Come on out and talk to us. We really want to know what's going on. We really want to help."

Another pause.

"Oh...very well," Jay said.

The door opened, and Moses and Jay stood beside each other, looking up at the natural historian. For some reason, Will looked much more intimidating than he usually did.

"Let's talk more at my house," Will said.

------------

When the party arrived at Will's house, they eagerly waited to hear Moses and Jay's story.

"Well...there's no point in hiding the truth anymore," Jay said.

"Like there was ever a point..." Norma spat.

Will bonked her on the head, causing her to yelp. Jay continued his story.

"When Moses and I investigated the Waterways, we encountered Solon. He sprayed some gas at us, yet it didn't have any effect at the time. However, last night we experienced some frightening nightmares, and then we've just been skittish ever since. I couldn't bear to face the Oresoren, and Moses has been afraid of Giet."

"I don't understand anything anymore..." Moses whined. "I still love Giet like always, but I can't let him get near me."

"What's worse is that we don't even know if our experience is related to Solon's gas," Jay added.

"Well, it sure doesn't sound like a coincidence," Senel remarked.

"All right, it's time to get that So-So!" Norma announced. "Charge!"

Everyone looked at her blankly.

"Uh, guys," she said. "I'm sensing some hesitation here."

Grune raised her fist after finally coming to grips on what was happening. "Charge!"

"Yeah, that's my G-Girl!" Norma cheered.

"We don't have any reason to go after Solon," Will said. "We don't have any evidence that he truly is behind this mess."

"Oh, come on!"

"We'd better wait and see if Solon makes a follow-up move. We'll deal with him then."

"So what do we do?" Moses asked.

"All we can do is go on with our day," Will said. "I'll spend the day with Madame Musette, and then head to the Fountain Plaza this evening for her birthday celebration."

"Oh yeah, they're supposed to shoot fireworks tonight!" Norma added. "They're gonna go, 'Whoosh!' And then, 'Kaboom!!'"

"Ahh!" Moses and Jay jumped back with a start.

"Ha! You're just a couple of wimps now!" Norma said.

Will bonked her on the head again.

"Will...I think we'll just stay here tonight," Jay said, "if it's all right with you."

"Yeah, I don't wanna see no fireworks," Moses added.

Will sighed. "Very well. We'll see you later tonight. Let's go, everyone."

"Yeah, why don't you two babies hold hands?" Norma teased. "And don't do anything naughty."

Will raised his fist to bonk her again, but Norma dashed out the front door before he could do so. The rest of the party left as well, leaving Moses and Jay alone.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The sun was only beginning to set as Senel's escorted Madame Musette to the Fountain Plaza. Chloe looked up at the sky, noticing that some dark clouds were beginning to roll in.

"The weather is getting bad," she said.

"Yeah," Senel agreed. "If it keeps up, we'll have to cancel the fireworks."

"No, not the fireworks!" Norma whined. "You can't cancel the fireworks!"

"It's dangerous to shoot fireworks during a storm," Will said.

"We'll have to think of an alternate activity," Senel said. "Do you have any ideas, Musette?"

"Oh, a simple birthday song will do," Musette said. "I'm an old woman now. I'm not as big on parties as I used to be. After the celebration, would you all come join me for tea?"

"Oh, that sounds lovely," Grune said.

"But tea is so boring!" Norma complained.

"It would be our pleasure to join you for tea," Will said.

"Thank you, Will," Musette said. "By the way, where are Moses and Jay?"

"They're staying at my house. They're not feeling well."

"They're probably hiding underneath Teach's bed," Norma said.

"Norma!" Will scolded.

"Oops...I mean, they're probably playing in Teach's bed."

"Norma!"

"Uh...I mean, they're probably getting horny on the kitchen counter!"

Will raised his fist once again, but Norma quickly ran behind Senel.

"You're taking the fall for me, Senny!" she declared.

"Like hell I am!" Senel snapped.

Musette shook her head and smiled. "You're all as lively as ever. It makes me feel young again. You all have my gratitude."

Everyone only blinked at her.

Will scratched his head. "Well...I'm not sure I understand, but I'm pleased to have been of service."

The group finally reached the Fountain Plaza, where all of the town's residents were waiting.

"Surprise!" they called in unison. "Happy Birthday, Musette!"

"Oh my, thank you, everyone," Musette replied. "I'm glad to see you all here."

The Bantam Bouncers, Curtis and Isabella, leaped into the center of the plaza.

"Happy Birthday to Her Excellency!" they sang in unison.

Just then, a bright flash of lightning filled the sky, and rain began to pour.

"Aww..." the crowd mumbled.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Isabella announced. "Due to the foul weather, we will be unable to launch the fireworks tonight."

"Aww..." the crowd muttered again.

Slowly, the citizens began to leave the plaza, leaving Senel's group behind with Musette, Curtis, and Isabella. The rain continued to pour steadily.

"There goes the party..." Norma sighed.

"Oh my, what a shame," Grune said.

"Don't be so gloomy, friends!" Curtis boasted. "When the clouds darken your skies, and the rain begins to pour, one must sing!"

He dropped to one knee and began to sing proudly. "I'm singin' in the rain, I'm singin' in the rain..."

"Ugh..." The party crouched down low, covering their ears to block out Curtis' awful singing.

"Oh my..." Musette said. "This weather really gets me in the mood for some tea."

"Ooh, good idea!" Curtis called. "Let's all have a tea party! For love!"

Senel's group sighed as they followed Musette out of the plaza.

--------------

Meanwhile, Moses and Jay sat in the living room of Will's house, passing the time with a board game. They could hear the rain pelting the house outside, but they ignored the soft rumbling noise.

Moses rolled the dice and moved his piece on the board. "Hah hah!" he laughed for no apparent reason.

Jay looked annoyed. "What's so funny?"

"It's just that I'm about to win the game!" Moses said boastfully. "So roll the dice and weep, boy!"

Jay looked at the board, but he just didn't see Moses' prediction coming true. He rolled the dice, which called for the number of spaces needed to reach the goal. Accordingly, Jay moved his piece to the goal.

"I win," he said innocently.

"Hey!" Moses cried. "I said roll 'em and weep!"

"Why should I weep when I've won?"

"Listen, you little..."

A flash of lightning interrupted the argument followed by a loud thunderclap. Moses and Jay jumped, quickly clinging onto each other.

"D...did you hear that?" Moses asked.

"It's just thunder, you idiot," Jay said.

"I never liked thunder..."

"It can't hurt us...we'll be safe in here..."

There was another lightning flash and a thunderclap. The lights in the house flickered, and then went out completely. Moses and Jay continued to cling to each other in the dark. The only sound was the rain pouring outside, and the only source of light was the occasional lightning flash.

"Now I'm really scared..." Moses whined, trembling.

"Just think..." Jay said, trying to maintain control of the situation. "How do you normally deal with your fear?"

"Well...I like to listen to the rain...even being in the rain always helps me."

With that idea in mind, Moses let go of Jay and went to the front door. Moses opened the door and looked outside. It was completely dark, save for the moonlight glimmering from the wet grass and road puddles. Moses strolled into the yard while Jay stood in the doorway.

"Moses, be careful!" Jay called.

Moses turned to face him, spreading his arms out. "Hah hah, this feels great! Come on out, Jay! The water's fine!"

Another flash of lightning and a thunderclap boomed in the sky.

"Ahh!" Moses and Jay screamed again.

Moses dashed back into the house and slammed the door. Then they both ran upstairs into Will's bedroom, diving into the bed, and pulling the covers over themselves.  
------------------

**Curtis received the title of "Singer in the Rain!"**  
_A reenactment of the classic film by the Elvis Presley wannabe._


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

The dining room at Musette's house was lit up with candles after the power outage. Musette watched over her tea kettle hanging over the fireplace. She removed the kettle, then walked over to the dining table, filling each of the cups. Senel's group stood around the table behind a chair. Since Musette was the Holy Sovereign of Rexalia, it was customary to wait until she was seated before taking a seat themselves. When Musette finished serving the tea, she sat down in her chair, and then the others took their seats as well.

Will raised his cup. "Happy Birthday, Musette."

The others raised their cups as well. "Happy Birthday."

"Thank you, everyone," Musette said. "Ah yes, this is much nicer. Much more pleasant."

"How is this pleasant?" Norma asked. "We're stuck in the middle of a thunderstorm drinking tea by candlelight in the dark."

"It's not about the party," Will said. "Whether it's a large party or a cup of tea, all that matters is being with the people you care about."

"If you didn't want the big celebration, then who arranged for the assembly at the plaza?" Chloe asked.

"That was Curtis' idea," Musette said. "I told him it wasn't necessary, but he insisted."

"I'm sure everyone wanted to celebrate the birthday of the Holy Sovereign of Rexalia," Senel said.

"But at the same time, Curtis should have respected your wish," Chloe added.

The room fell silent as everyone was reminded of the storm by the rain pelting the windows, the flashes of lightning, and the thunder booming in the sky above.

"You know, this is kind of nice," Shirley said, attempting to break the silence. "It's a shame that Moses and Jay had to miss this."

"I'm sure they're all snuggled up together," Grune said.

"You got that right, G-Girl," Norma said.

"Why do you keep talking about them like that?" Senel asked.

"Come on! They fight like hell, but they really care about each other. Perfect chemistry doesn't get more apparent than that."

Senel sighed. As much as he hated, it, he found that he couldn't argue with it.

"So what do we do now?" he asked.

"Let's tell a scary story!" Norma suggested.

Chloe looked around. "I suppose this setting does provide the mood for it."

"Okay, I'll tell a scary story," Grune said.

Everyone raised an eye as Grune picked up a single candle and walked to the end of the table, where everyone could see her. The same question flew through everyone's minds; what kind of scary story was the clueless Grune going to tell?

Grune held the candle in front of her, dimly illuminating her face. "On a dark, dark night, there was a dark, dark town. In that dark town was a dark, dark farm. In that dark farm was a dark, dark room. In that dark room were some dark, dark stairs."

Norma grabbed onto Senel's arm, leaning against him. "I'm scared, Senny! It keeps getting darker and darker!"

Chloe and Shirley glared at her silently. Grune continued her story.

"And down those dark stairs was a dark, dark basement. In that dark basement was a dark, dark closet. And in that dark closet...was a man...in a hockey mask."

Norma gasped as she clung Senel even tighter.

Grune smiled and went on. "The man stepped out of the closet...oh, I think he wants something. Should I ask him what he wants?"

"No, no, don't!" Norma whined, trembling.

Grune was oblivious to her protests. "Dear Mr. Man-With-The-Hockey-Mask...what do you want from us?"

"Aaahhh!!" Norma screamed as another flash of lightning hit the sky with a roar of thunder.

"The man raised his hockey stick and replied, 'Why don't you come play hockey with me, sweetie.' The end."

Norma stopped trembling, but still held onto Senel. "G-Girl, that was lame!"

"Norma..." Chloe said in a low voice.

"Hmm?" Norma turned to see Chloe and Shirley glaring at her, the fire from the candles reflecting in their eyes. Norma slowly released Senel and straightened herself in her chair.

Grune quietly went back to her seat and sat down, taking a sip of her tea. Once again, the room fell into silence.

--------------

Moses and Jay carefully emerged from the covers of Will's bed. The storm had calmed down a little, but it was still raining with a fair amount of thunder.

"Looks like it's calmin' down," Moses whispered.

Jay flinched as he felt Moses' wet pants. "Moses, you're all wet!"

"Oh yeah, we need a shower!"

They both climbed out of the bed.

"'We'?" Jay asked. "No, no...it's just you who needs the shower."

"Oh, we'll just see about that!" Moses wiped his hand on Jay's face, smearing the rainwater on him. "There, now we both need a shower. Come on!"

Moses took Jay by the wrist and pulled him downstairs into the living room. After they lit a few candles, Moses headed down the hall and stepped into the bathroom with Jay in tow.

"Hah hah, this is gonna be great!" Moses cackled.

Jay blushed. "There's no way I'm getting in the shower with you!"

"Just get in here!" Moses seized Jay by the jacket and yanked him into the bathroom, slamming the door.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The candles had been set by the bathroom sink. The shower was running with Moses standing under the water, washing himself thoroughly. Jay stood behind him with his back turned, covering his face. Moses paid no attention as he sang to himself.

"Do you believe in magic? And I hope you do...you'll always have a friend wearin' big red shoes...when you believe in magic."

Jay wanted to cry. Although Moses' singing was annoying, he hoped that the bandit would keep ignoring him.

"Jay."

_Crap._

"It's your turn, Jay."

Jay's eyes widened. "M...my turn?"

"Finally, I get to fulfill my dream of washin' your fine hair!"

Jay gasped. Grabbing Jay by the shoulders, Moses pulled him underneath the shower head.

Squeezing some shampoo into his hand, Moses began to lather Jay's long black hair. Jay closed his eyes; for a stupid bandit, Moses' lathering was surprisingly gentle. Moses scrubbed Jay's head firmly, then gathered the hair in his hands, squeezing it all the way down to the end. Jay felt awash in pure bliss. Moses didn't even stop there. After carefully rinsing Jay's hair, Moses lathered a white bath pouf and began to gently apply the suds to Jay's body.

Jay gasped as he noticed an odd flicker in the candlelight. "Moses?"

"What's up, Jay?"

"There's someone else in here."

"No way! There ain't nobody in here but us!"

Suddenly, the shower curtain flew open, and a flashlight beamed directly at the pair. "Ah ha!" yelled a rasping voice.

"Gah!" Moses and Jay jumped with a start. Although the flashlight was shining at them, they could not see who was behind it.

"Why you!" Moses threw a hard punch to the intruder's face. The flashlight dropped to the floor, and the intruder hit the floor with a thud.

Jay and Moses stepped out of the shower. The candlelight was too dim to identify the intruder, so Jay picked up the flashlight and shined it down on him.

"Solon!?"

"What the!?" Moses gasped. "And he saw us naked!"

"He's unconscious. I didn't think he could be taken out that easily."

Moses scoffed. "He must've had a heart attack."

The pair paused briefly, wondering how Solon could have gotten in without being detected. The answer was obvious for Jay; Solon was a ninja. But for Moses, the answer was an enigma wrapped in a mystery. However, they both knew that there was a bigger issue at hand.

"Don't just stand there naked!" Jay ordered. "Put your clothes on! And stop staring at my..."

"Oh, fine, fine!"

Moses and Jay got dressed as fast as they could. Jay set the flashlight aside and reached down to pick up Solon...only to feel the stone floor.

"Impossible!" he gasped. "He's gone!"

"No way!" Moses exclaimed in shock. "What do we do?"

"He must still be in the house somewhere. Let's hurry and find him."

They slowly stepped out of the bathroom and into the living room. Now without the candlelight, the room was pitch black except for the flashlight beam shining through the room.

"Moses, give me the flashlight," Jay said.

Moses paused. "I ain't got no flashlight."

Jay turned to face him. If neither of them had the flashlight, then...then...

The flashlight, hovering between them, shined its light upward, revealing Solon's evil face. "Boo."

"Ahh!" Moses and Jay both leaped backwards.

"Ah hah hah hah!" Solon laughed boastfully. "I see my gas has worked perfectly!"

Jay gasped. "So it's true. I had a feeling that they were related."

"I just never thought I would catch you two in the shower," Solon continued. "The very sight was so disgusting, it made my stomach turn!"

"Well, it serves ya right for peekin'!" Moses said.

"Seriously," Jay said, annoyed.

"Enough talk!" Solon snapped. "It's time for me to finish off the bandit and then take the apprentice for my own. Make it last, won't you? I want to enjoy this moment."

Solon grinned in the beam before switching off the flashlight.

"Oh no, it's dark!" Moses cried. "I can't see anything!"

Solon laughed again. "Now, tremble in fear as you wander about aimlessly, waiting for your death!"

_That line is seriously clichéd,"_ Jay thought.

"I'm-I'm-I'm...I'm scared!" Moses whined.

"Moses, hold still and be quiet!"

Moses paused. "O-okay, I'll hold still..."

"Now be quiet."

"Okay...I'm bein' quiet..."

"Moses!"

"All right, already! Sheesh, can't you keep your mouth shut!?"

Moses and Jay finally managed to shut themselves up. They stood still and silent, trying to sense their surroundings. They could only hear Solon chuckling softly, the sound of which seeming to come from everywhere and nowhere at the same time.

"Can you hear me?" the voice taunted. "You fools have no idea where I am, do you?"

Moses broke out in cold sweat while Jay's heart began pumping rapidly.

"You see nothing, and you hear nothing," Solon continued. "Your minds have nothing to feed upon. It's a tiny meal indeed. Heh heh..."

Jay could hear the voice getting closer and closer...behind him...

"Picture this: the bandit will die, and the apprentice will be under my tender loving care once again..."

Jay's eyes widened. _Just what is his definition of "tender loving care?"_

"Isn't it exciting, Jay? Wouldn't you love for me to take good care of you again?"

Jay felt something poking his shoulder from behind. He spun around quickly, swinging his dagger, only to strike at air. Jay paused to sense Solon's presence again. He had moved away, somewhere to the left.

"Moses..." Solon cooed. "Think about it. Death isn't such a bad thing. In death, there is no pain, no suffering. You'll be completely free. The only uncertainty is how you will die. I can make it quick and painless, or I can finish you off nice and slow. Which will it be?"

Moses raised his spear. "Neither, punk! Ain't no way I'm gonna die yet!"

"Moses..." Jay said softly.

"Well, if you insist on living," Solon said, "I'll just have to finish you off nice and slow."

Jay's heart jumped. "No!"

Blindly, he ran across the room, sensing Solon's location. He tackled someone to the ground, hearing Solon groaning in pain.

"Ahh!" Moses screamed, waiting for something to stab him at any point of his body.

Jay straightened himself. "There's no need to be afraid, Moses. We still have our abilities, and we can still use them."

"Hey, you're right!" Moses agreed. "Yeah, we ain't afraid of you!"

"Use your animal instinct, Moses!"

"Right!"

"Fools!" Solon growled. "You cannot win!"

Jay made his way through the darkness over to the front door. "Moses!"

Somehow, Moses was able to sense Jay's intention. Next, he used his "animal instinct" to sense Solon's location.

"Ha, gotcha!" Moses hopped up, kicking Solon with both feet. Jay heard the master's footsteps stumbling towards him, and then opened the front door. Solon staggered outside into the rain, hitting the pavement and splashing into the puddles. Moses joined Jay at the doorway.

"And stay out!" he ordered before slamming the door.

"Whew!" Both Moses and Jay let out a sigh of relief.

"All right!" Moses rubbed his hands together. "Let's get back to where we were before we were rudely interrupted!"

"First, we need to make certain that Solon cannot reenter the house," Jay told him.

"Oh, right! How do we do that?"

"Well, first we..." Jay leaned in close to the bandit and began explaining his plan...


	7. Epilogue

Epilogue

The town of Werites Beacon was engulfed in rain and darkness for about half of the night. Eventually, the rain stopped completely and the utilities were restored.

"Finally, the power's back!" Norma exclaimed, as the lights came back on in Musette's house.

Will glanced over at the clock. "It's already very late. I need to head back home."

"I wanna check on Moses and Jay," Senel said.

"Me too," Shirley said.

The others nodded in agreement.

"Thank you all for staying with me," Musette said. "I enjoyed your company."

Will smiled. "We'll see you later, Musette."

The group left the house and began walking down the road.

"It's a relief to see the street lights on again," Chloe said.

"It sure is," Senel agreed.

The group walked down the road without conversation until they arrived at Will's house. Will took the lead, heading towards the front door. However, as soon as he stepped onto the pavement, his feet flew out from under him, and he hit the ground on his back.

"Will!" Senel went to check on him, but he too slipped on the pavement, falling on his face.

"Senel!" Shirley moved in to check on him, but she kept her distance, knowing that she would fall as well.

Will tried to stand, only to slip and fall again. Senel rolled into the grass and stood up from there. He then touched the pavement with his fingers.

"Damn! Somebody greased the pavement!"

"Do you think that Moses and Jay did this?" Shirley asked.

Will rolled into the grass and stood up. "Most likely."

"But why would they do something like that?" Chloe asked.

"Because they're scared, silly," Norma said. "Or because they don't want anyone to catch them being sexy."

"Well, the grass is safe," Senel said. "We can get to the door from there."

They walked through the grass on either side of the pavement. Senel reached for the doorknob and pushed...but it wouldn't budge. Senel stepped onto the slippery doorstep, using the knob for support. He tried to push the door open, but the slippery surface did not allow him to exert any pressure. After a moment, Senel gave up, stepping back into the grass.

"I can't get the door open!" he said. "They must have blocked it from the other side!"

"It looks like we'll have to go in through the window," Chloe said.

The others nodded. Shirley went to the window and slid it upwards. Behind the window, two books dropped from above, hitting a wooden board in the floor. The other end of the board sprang upward, flinging a frying pan directly into Shirley's face. Shirley cried out as she fell backwards into the grass.

"Shirley!" Senel went to help her up.

"Ugh...I'm okay..." Shirley said weakly, covering her face.

Senel stood up and carefully climbed through the window. Looking around, everything seemed normal, except for the books and board at his feet. There was also a chair propped against the front door underneath the knob.

_Just as I thought,_ Senel thought.

He went to the door and removed the chair, then opened the door. "I got it!"

The others entered the house, avoiding the pavement.

"Um...so now that we're inside, we should be safe, right?" Norma asked.

Shirley spotted a pot on the stove. "It looks like they're cooking something."

She went to the stove and pulled off the lid. Inside the pot, a bunch of small red fireworks immediately set off, popping very loudly. Shirley screamed as she staggered backwards. Everyone else jumped in fear as well, until the noise stopped.

"What the hell was that!?" Norma exclaimed.

Senel went over to the stove to see the burnt out fireworks in the pot. "They must have booby trapped the whole house!"

"We'll have to stay on guard," Will said. "I never thought I'd have to say that in regards to my own home..."

"Moses, Jay!" Senel called. "We're back! Can you hear me!?"

Nothing.

"Red! JJ, stop playing around!" Norma called.

"There's no sign of them," Chloe said.

"Where could they be?" Shirley asked.

"They're probably upstairs," Senel said.

"Maybe they're taking a nap," Grune said.

Senel walked into the next room, only to trip over a wire in the doorway. As he looked up from the floor, he saw that the wire was connected to the large monster skeleton hanging from the ceiling.

_Uh-oh..._ Senel thought.

The skeleton's head turned towards Senel, before breaking off and hitting the floor next to him. One by one, the other bones broke off and fell, raining down all over Senel.

"What the!?" Will peeked into the room to see Senel in a heap within the pile of bones. "You idiot! What have you done!?"

Senel stood up quickly. "Will, I can explain!"

Will gave him a hard bonk on the head. "Do you have any idea how long it took me to find all these bones, let alone put them together!?"

"Will, I'm sorry!!"

"Now I have to find another complete specimen to replace it!"

"Will, please calm down," Shirley said. "It's just a skeleton."

Will paused and looked at the bones again, then sighed. "I...I apologize for my outburst. It's just...that skeleton was my pride and joy, my greatest achievement as a natural historian."

"It's okay," Chloe said. "We all know how important your studies are to you."

Will looked up at the bedrooms. "Moses and Jay must be in one of those bedrooms. I'll start picking up this mess."

The group went upstairs, stopping in front of the two rooms. Chloe carefully opened the door to Will's room and peeked inside. As the door open, and blowtorch suddenly blew fire from above at Chloe. Chloe screamed and quickly backed off, closing the door.

"C, your hat is on fire!" Norma cried.

"What!?" Chloe gasped as she threw her flaming beret to the floor. In a complete panic, the group quickly stomped on the beret, extinguishing the flames. Afterwards, they all paused to catch their breath.

"Oh no..." Chloe picked up her burned beret. "My beret is ruined..."

"Chill out, C," Norma told her. "You can always buy another one at the shop."

Will came upstairs. "Is everything all right?"

"There's a blowtorch in your room that sets off when you open the door," Chloe said.

"They're going all-out with this booby trap thing," Senel said.

"There's only one more room to check out," Shirley said.

"Ah ha, so they're in Hattie's room," Norma said. "Look out, Red and JJ, we're coming for you."

"By the way, where is Harriet?" Senel asked.

"She's spending the night with Elsa," Will said. "They were having a slumber party at the hospital to celebrate Madame Musette's birthday."

Senel turned to face Harriet's room.

"Be careful, there could be another trap," Chloe warned.

"We're not going to fall for any more traps."

With that, Senel kicked the door open. Surprisingly, nothing happened. Looking into the room, the group saw that it was mostly intact.

They carefully stepped into the room, keeping an eye out for any more traps. As they moved in front of the bed, they found Moses and Jay sleeping peacefully side by side. Jay held a wooden cross on his chest while Moses held a large slab of meat wrapped in wax paper.

"Oh my, they're taking a nap together," Grune said. "How sweet."

"They're sleeping like logs," Chloe said.

"Even after all the traps we set off?" Senel asked. "I don't see how that's possible."

The group paused as they watched Jay and Moses snooze for another moment.

"Wake up!!" they yelled in unison.

"Ahh!" Moses sat up with a scream.

Jay sat up slowly. "Oh...I must have nodded off."

"So, Red and JJ," Norma said, "what are you guys up to?"

"Uh..." Jay and Moses glanced at each other.

"Jay, what were we doin'?" Moses asked.

Jay paused. "Um...I'm not sure myself. Were we dreaming again?"

"Yeah...we were dreaming that we were in the shower, and Solon was here!"

"We managed to throw him out, and then we set traps throughout the house to prevent Solon from re-entering."

"Guys!" Norma said. "The traps were real!"

"What?" Moses and Jay asked in unison.

"They were real?" Moses asked.

"The grease on the pavement?" Jay asked.

Will nodded. "Yes."

"The frying pan at the window?" Jay asked.

Shirley nodded. "Yeah..."

"The chair propped at the front door?"

"Yeah," Senel said flatly.

"The firecrackers on the stove?"

"Oh yeah," Norma said.

"The tripwire connected to the skeleton display?" Jay asked.

"Hell yeah!" Senel yelled.

"The blowtorch in Will's room?"

Chloe held out her burnt beret. "Indeed!"

"And the spring trap in this room?"

The group glanced at each other.

"No, we didn't see that one," Senel said. "It's good that we didn't set off all the traps."

"For real?" Moses asked. "Then what's that thing that Bubbles is standin' on?"

"Huh?" Norma looked down to see that she was standing on a pink square. "Uh-oh..."

The others took a step away from her. Just then, the spring trap set off, hurling Norma to the side, crashing through the window.

"Whoa..." Moses muttered. "Bubbles must be light as a feather."

Jay said nothing as he came to a realization. "So, if the traps were real, then that means..."

Moses faced him as he realized the same thing. "That Solon was really in here? And he saw us naked in the shower??"

"Solon was here??" Senel asked.

"Yes...probably trying to take advantage of the power outage and our fear," Jay told him.

"Your fear..." Will said. "How do you feel now?"

Moses and Jay glanced at each other again.

"I...I feel real good!" Moses said. "I don't feel scared anymore!"

"Me neither," Jay said. "I feel secure...and confident."

"I guess the only way to be sure is to go see Giet."

The pair finally got out of bed. They headed downstairs into the living room, with the rest of the group following. When they stepped outside, Moses and Jay began walking down the road, while the others ran around the house to check on Norma. She was on the ground below Harriet's window, sleeping peacefully.

"Norma..." Will said.

"Hmm?" Norma picked herself up.

"Are you okay?" Shirley asked.

Norma rubbed her head. "What happened? My head hurts..."

"The spring trap flung you right through the window," Senel said.

"What!?" Norma stood up and stomped her feet. "You're gonna pay for this, JJ!"

------------------

Moses and Jay went back to the bandits' camp. Giet was sleeping outside of Moses' tent, but immediately jumped up upon seeing his best friend.

"Hey, Giet!" Moses called.

"Woof!" Giet ran over to Moses, who embraced him.

"Giet, my buddy!" Moses cooed. "I missed ya! I'm glad I'm not afraid of you no more!"

Jay began thinking to himself. _Hmm...I wonder if this means I won't be afraid of the Oresoren anymore?_

"Well, I need to get home to the Oresoren village," he said.

Moses looked back at him. "Oh, right. Go back to your family, Jay."

Jay nodded, then left the bandits' camp.

----------------

In the Oresoren village, the three Scallop Brothers were snoozing in their home. When Jay arrived, he couldn't bring himself to disturb them. He watched them for a moment with a slight smile, then began to walk upstairs. He stopped after only two steps and glanced at the little otters again.

"Well, what the heck?" he shrugged.

He stepped back into the room, reclining on the floor next to the Oresoren, and then went to sleep.


End file.
